Christmas tradition
by Rose-Aki
Summary: When Neji upsets Tenten on Christmas Eve feelings are surfacing and confessions are made. Neji/Tenten


A/N: This is my first Tenten/Neji story. It's going up a little earlier because I'm away over Christmas, but I hope you still enjoy it :)

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It was Christmas Eve and the first Christmas party since Konoha existed was in full swing. This being an idea of Tsunade there was lot of sake for the jonin and above every table and door a mistletoe for the amusement of the Hokage. She loved bets and this time it was her turn guess who of the Konoha eleven would end up together on the party. However even Tsunade, having placed bets on everything possible in the world, didn't see this twist coming.

Neji stood on the side of the makeshift dance floor next to a table watching the others with an emotionless face. If the Hokage didn't make this Christmas party an obligation he wouldn't be here and could use the time for more important things like training. Probably with his teammate Tenten.

Thinking about her, his eyes automatically searched for Tenten in the crowd. When he found her talking to Lee the corner of his mouth twitched the slightest bit up. Due to their training sessions he spent almost all his time with her and they became what he would call best friends.

Still there was something bothering him about that. The more time he spent with her the stranger he felt. He was actually enjoying having her around and when he saw her, his heart skipped a few more beats than it normally did. Being the prodigy he was he found out what these feelings could mean, but that didn't mean that he had to acknowledge them.

Caring for someone this deeply could give an enemy an advantage and would make him weak and that wasn't something he accepted. He hadn't been training this hard to let a foolish emotion ruin it all. Despite having this opinion on the matter, he couldn't stop his heart from beating faster when Tenten caught his eye and came into his direction.

"Hey Neji, don't you want to come over to the others?"

"Hn."

"I take that as a no. Well then I will just stay here with you for a bit."

When he didn't reply Tenten took it as confirmation that he approved of her company. She knew that many saw him as cold or even heartless, but she knew better. Spending so much time with him due to their training she could interpret the smallest movements of his face and could read him like no one else could. She was sure that he talked to her more in a day than to others in a lifetime and it made her happy to know that he began to open up to her.

Others even went as far as saying they looked like the best of friends, but truth to be told was that Tenten wished for a little more than friendship. Despite being able to read Neji's expressions, as far as he showed any, she never saw that he held this kind of feelings for her, no matter how hard she searched in his eyes. It saddened her that her feelings were unrequited, but being best friends with Neji was more than she had ever hoped for. Maybe there was a little chance that one day he could return her feelings, but it was a really small one.

Naruto's loud voice pulled her out of her thoughts.

"Look, Neji and Tenten are standing under a mistletoe."

Neji couldn't miss Naruto's voice either and now looked critical above himself. How could he not have noticed this thing hanging above his head? It was probably only thanks to his cold posture and glare that not any of his fangirls had approached him already. A side glance at Tenten told him that she hadn't been aware of the mistletoe either, if the shocked expression on her face was anything to go by.

"You know it's tradition that the two people under the mistletoe have to kiss. So what are you waiting for?" Ino's voice could be heard.

Now Neji could see that his teammate was blushing.

'She must be embarrassed by this situation.' Was the only conclusion he came to.

To him it was clear that he wouldn't kiss her no matter how tempting it was. Sure, he had wanted to for a while now, but there were enough reasons to not do it. First there was the chance that after he kissed her he had to admit to himself that this feeling he got around her was indeed love. Not that he was afraid of that, because Neji Hyuga was never afraid of anything, but he didn't want to risk it. Then there was the fact that she obviously didn't want to kiss him, why else would she blush when not out of embarrassment. He would never force a kiss on her if she didn't want it, he respected her too much for that.

Seeing that Tenten wouldn't do anything to solve the situation he took it up on himself to dismiss the awaiting crowd.

"I will not kiss Tenten. That's just stupid."

His voice didn't betrayed the emotions and conflicted thoughts he was having. His expressionless facade was still in place, but a side glance at the kunoichi next to him let him almost drop it. There was clearly a hurt look in her eyes and for the first time in his life Neji Hyuga felt guilty.

Tenten felt like her heart just broke into a million pieces. She had known that he would never love her, but there had always been a small hope that maybe she was wrong and he reciprocated her feelings. Hearing his voice sound so cold and his face being expressionless hurt so much. The reality that it was hopeless came crashing down on her with full force and all she felt was sadness.

"But it's tradition." Ino's voice brought her back to reality and made her realize that right now she had to act like her world didn't just fall apart.

Putting on a fake smile she waved Lee over, who despite looking confused came to stand next to her. Leaning over she placed a quick kiss on his cheek and faced the crowd again.

"So now tradition is fulfilled. Let's continue the party."

"Yeah, let's show our youthfulness by dancing." Lee shouted and started to do as he claimed. Soon he was joined by Gai and everyone was looking amused by their weird dance moves.

Tenten was glad that the attention was off of her and Neji. She made a note to herself to thank Lee and Gai later. Not a moment longer could she stand close to Neji, so without saying anything to him she went to the balcony.

When the French door closed behind her and blocked out the music and voices she took a deep breath. Her heart ached and she felt water gather in her eyes. She was never one to cry and she surely didn't want to start now. Her sight on the night sky got blurry, but she wouldn't let the tears fall. She had known from the beginning that he didn't feel that way about her, but if that was the case then why did it hurt so much to have it confirmed? She was only glad that no one seemed to know what she was going through.

Meanwhile Neji had an idea why she left so quickly. The hurt look in her eyes already haunted him and that he was the reason for it made him feel even more guilty. Did she really wanted to kiss him or how had he hurt her? For the first time in his life he didn't know what to think or do. Even if she had feelings for him, which was unlikely, was it really worth the risk of becoming weak.

Suddenly he felt a gentle hand on his shoulder.

"You know sometimes what we think makes us weak makes us that much stronger. Love gave me more strength than I could ever archive through training."

There were not many people who would dare to stand so close to him and even touch him, so he wasn't surprised to see that the hand on his shoulder belong to Hinata. Then her words began to sink in. For his cousin it surely was true, she had almost completely stopped stuttering and she had become braver as well since she found love. Maybe it was worth a try, after all if it made him stronger love couldn't be so bad.

Neji nodded at Hinata in silent thanks and respect and made his way to the balcony where Tenten was standing on. When he closed the French door behind himself he saw her flinch and quickly wipe over her eyes with her arm. Had she been crying? The moment she turned around to face him, his suspicion was confirmed, her eyes looked glassy and her expression sad. She must have realized who stood in front of her by now, because she turned away immediately before speaking up.

"Do you need something?"

Tenten didn't even try to sound like her normal cheerful self. She felt like all her willpower and strength had left her all at once. Neji was the last person she wanted to see right now, so why did he have to be here? Surely he had not come to comfort her if he even realized what his words had done to her.

"I realized something."

She didn't reply to that, but waited what he had to say next. Somehow she had a feeling that his next words wouldn't be anything bad. Maybe it was the softness in his voice that let her stay instead of leave like she had wanted to when he had first entered the balcony.

"Emotions don't always make you weak. Some can give you more strength and you as my training partner can help me become even stronger." He took a few steps forward so he stood next to her before continuing. "Hinata told me that love is this emotion."

Neji hoped this was enough to make her understand. This was as far as he could go with his confession. He didn't know how else he could tell her what he felt for her. Maybe the way he said it was a little uncommon, but Tenten knew him better than anyone so she had to know what he meant.

"If you are really saying what I think you are saying, why didn't you kiss me?" She was facing him now. Her eyes held hope again, but he could still see the hurt lying deep inside them.

"You seemed embarrassed and I wasn't sure what I felt."

A simple answer, but for Tenten it was enough to confirm his feelings for her. Slowly she moved in front of him with her back to his chest and took a hold of his arms, only to lay them around her waist. She felt him stiffen for a moment before he tightened his arms around her and relaxed.

Looking at the stars again they seemed brighter now and Tenten was sure that Neji and her could make this relationship work. They would do it at their own pace. Their first kiss should be special and shared in private where they felt comfortable and they wouldn't need a mistletoe for it.

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A/N: Happy holidays and merry Christmas to all of you :)


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